HDR1012000170100314951200WEEKLY WEATHER & CROP BULLETIN HDR2012000170100314951200NAT. AGRI. SUMMARY NATIONAL AGRICULTURAL SUMMARY March 6 - 12, 1995 HIGHLIGHTS: Heavy, mid week storms in California brought fieldwork to a standstill. Low-lying small grain fields endured widespread flooding and lodging. The extent of damage to low-lying wheat fields was unknown, while rapid growth was reported in wheat fields on higher ground. The flooding raised concern about fungus problems for grapes and other California fruit crops. Extensive damage to strawberry fields from standing water and silt was reported, and recently planted tomato fields in the Sacramento Valley will require replanting. Small grains in the Southwest progressed ahead of normal for the week. Wet fields and low soil temperatures in the Southeastern States slowed planting progress. Rain in the Delta and the Tennessee Valley slowed nitrogen application to wheat fields and limited pasturing of small grain fields. Bitter cold, rain, and snow early in the week in the Midwest restricted field activities. In Iowa, some grain elevators still had piles of corn stored on the ground. Wheat in Kansas remained semi-dormant with little freeze or wind damage, but some wheat streak mosaic was reported. Mild weather and sunshine late in the week encouraged wheat growth and greening in the Ohio Valley and across the southern half of the Nation. Low temperatures gave way to warm weekend weather in the Northern States that reduced the snowpack. Snow in the Texas Plains brought much- needed moisture to the dryland wheat crop, while rain slowed planting activities in the Coastal Bend region. HDR2012000170100314951200NAT. WEATHER SUMMARY National Weather Summary Volume 82, No. 11 March 5 - 11, 1995 For additional information, call (202) 720-7917. Highlights: A weather pattern unfolded similar to that observed in early- to mid-January, resulting in flooding rains in California and a rapid west-to-east warming trend. The pattern change dislodged some of the coldest air of the season from the Plains and Midwest. Early in the week, storminess shifted eastward from the Southwest, while bitterly cold air plunged southward through the Plains. In southern California, 48-hour (March 4-6) rainfall reached 14.58 inches atop Mt. Palomar, 10.34 inches at Idyllwild, 6.42 inches near Lake Arrowhead, and 5.36 inches on Mt. Wilson. By Monday, 7-day snowfall in the Colorado Rockies totaled 77 inches at Telluride and 70 inches at Wolf Creek Pass. On Tuesday morning, Dickinson, ND (-21 degrees F) and Hastings, NE (-2 degrees F) were the first of more than three dozen locations to set daily-record lows during the week. Warmth appeared briefly in the East, where daily-record highs were noted in locations such as Morgantown, WV (79 degrees F on Monday) and Boston, MA (67 degrees F on Wednesday). Significant precipitation preceded and accompanied the cold blast. Heavy snow fell in parallel strips--on Monday from the central Plains to the western Great Lakes States, and on Wednesday from the middle Ohio Valley into New England. On Tuesday morning, formerly bare ground was covered by 10 inches of snow in Mason City, IA and 6 inches in Lincoln, NE. An inch fell as far south as Oklahoma City, OK. By Thurday morning, 7 inches blanketed Charleston, WV. Nine inches of new snow fell in Burlington, VT. Daily precipitation records were established on March 7 in Flint, MI (0.71 inches), Lansing, MI (0.88 inches), Toledo, OH (1.14 inches), Springfield, IL (1.76 inches), Corpus Christi, TX (2.76 inches), and Tupelo, MS (3.75 inches). In addition, more than three dozen tornadic thunderstorms tore across the Southeast on March 7-8, including 11 in Mississippi, 10 in Louisiana, and 9 in Alabama. About two dozen daily-record lows were set on Wednesday morning in the upper Midwest. In Aberdeen, SD, the low of -32 degrees F was a March record. It was the coldest morning of the season, besting January 4, in locations such as Sioux Falls, SD (-15 degrees F) and Bismarck, ND (-28 degrees F). Omaha, NE (- 8 degrees F) experienced its first sub-zero reading in March since 1984. Temperatures fell below 0 degrees F as far south as northern Kansas, but snow insulated all but the southern Plains' hard red winter wheat from the late- season chill. Amarillo, TX recorded a low of 15 degrees F on Tuesday. Cold air spread eastward and modified toward week's end. On Thursday, daily records included -19 degrees F in St. Cloud, MN and -12 degrees F in Webster City, IA. A day later, daily-record lows were tied in Syracuse, NY (-1 degree F) and Youngstown, OH (6 degrees F). Lows dipped below freezing as far south as Tallahassee, FL (31 degrees F). Farther west, a stunning temperature reversal commenced. In Pierre, SD, the high of 80 degrees F on Saturday contrasted sharply with the low -14 degrees F on Wednesday. Daily records for March 11 were established in Scottsbluff, NE (79 degrees F), Rapid City, SD (77 degrees F), and Marquette, MI (55 degrees F, despite a 26-inch snow cover). In northern California, inundating rainfall arrived on Wednesday. A second wave of heavy precipitation overspread the entire State on Friday. In the San Francisco Bay area, 96-hour (March 7-11) rainfall totals included 8.27 inches at the Marin Civic Center, 6.21 inches at Santa Rosa, and 5.47 inches at Napa. Elsewhere in northern California, amounts included 10.72 inches at Blue Canyon, 8.73 inches in Big Sur, 8.31 inches in Mount Shasta, 7.86 inches in Paso Robles, and 5.38 inches in Redding. The greatest reported 24-hour total was 8.28 inches, measured on March 8-9 in Sonoma County near Healdsburg. With the rain came high winds, which on Friday gusted to 71 mph in Redding and 54 mph in San Francisco. In the Sierra Nevada, the snow depth at the Mammoth Lakes ski area reached 156 inches on Saturday, up from 107 inches at the beginning of March. Flooding devastated several river basins. The Napa River near St. Helena matched its February 1986 record crest on Thursday morning, 5.5 feet above flood stage, and at Napa attained its highest level on record, 6.0 feet above flood stage. Southeast of the Bay area, the Salinas River rose to new high- water marks at Bradley (10.9 feet above flood stage, 3.6 feet above the February 1969 record), and at Spreckels (7.5 feet above flood stage, 4.3 feet above the January 1952 record). Serious flooding revisited several areas, including parts of the Sacramento, Russian, and Eel basins. The Russian River at Hacienda Bridge, near Guerneville, rose an astounding 32 feet in 24 hours on March 8-9. On the San Joaquin River system, above-flood-stage levels continued at some locations through week's end, including the Tuolumne River at Modesto. Flood waters ripped out numerous bridges, most notably an Interstate-5 span near Coalinga, and a Route-1 link to the Monterey Peninsula. In southern California, 48-hour (March 9-11) totals reached 7.73 inches in Wrightwood, 5.12 inches in Santa Barbara, and 3.38 inches in Pasadena. At Big Bear Lake, the total precipitation of 3.09 inches included more than a foot of snow. At week's end, precipitation overspread the Interior West. For the second time in 7 days, nearly an inch of rain drenched Cedar City, UT. In Nevada, 24-hour precipitation totaled 5.06 inches at Mt. Charleston on March 10-11, while more than 2 inches pelted Caliente. In Utah's Wasatch Range at Brian Head, more than 3 feet of snow fell in 48 hours on March 10-12.